Global Nursing Numbers

Did you ever wonder how many nurses there are in the world? Well, there are 19.3 million nurses and midwives according to the World Health Organization's World Health Statistics Report, 2011. Global numbers and nurses in English speaking countries are presented in the tables below. [The numbers in ( ) show percent changes from 2009, and actual N per population in the 2009 report].

Region

Numberof Nurses

N per 10,000 Population

Africa

805,000 (+1.6%)

11 (11)

Americas

5,259,000 (+28.4%)

61 (49)

South-East Asia

2,224,000 (+13.7%)

13 (12)

Europe

6,620,000 (-0.6%)

75 (79)

Eastern Mediterranean

870,000 (+18.4%)

15 (15)

Western Pacific

3,600,000 (+5.4%)

20 (20)

Total

19,380,000 (+9.8%)

30 (28)

Numbers of nurses in English speaking countries:

Country

Number of Nurses

N per 10,000 Population

Australia

201,000 (+6.9%)

96 (97)

Canada

350,000 (-1.8%)

101 (101)

India

1,431,000 (+4.3%)

13 (13)

New Zealand

44,000 (+33.3%)

108 (89)

Philippines

488,000 (+1.4%)

60 (61)

South Africa

184,000 (0%)

41 (41)

United Kingdom

621,000 (-16.1%)

103 (128)

United States of America

2,927,000 (+9.6%)

98 (94)

Total

6,223,000 (+13.7%)

The number of nurses in each country can vary somewhat due to different dates and definitions used. Here are some more recent statistics on nurses in Canada and the United States: